My pulse pounded in my ears, from both the adrenaline and the desire. I reluctantly drew away from Torran and he let me go. I focused on the shrubs and tried to get my thoughts in order.

But they were still very focused on the almost kiss.

My lips tingled. I peeked at Torran’s face, but his expression had returned to its unreadable natural state. This time, though, there was no doubt: I hadn’t imagined the desire in his gaze. If not for the untimely transport, I would know how his lips felt against mine.

Damned transport.

I cleared my throat and prayed my face wasn’t as red as it felt. The moment was lost, so I returned to the problem of the theft. “So how did the thieves get over the plants without getting stabbed?”

“They wore armor.” Torran’s voice was steady and didn’t reveal any of his thoughts.

But the statement did reveal something else. My gaze shot back to his face, embarrassment forgotten. “You have video. Or witnesses.”

I waved the implicit question away before he could deflect again. “Never mind, we’ll discuss that once we’re back on the ground.” I worked through the theft in my head. I could see the side of the house from here. So climb over the wall, infiltrate the house, grab the ring . . . then what? “Did they leave this way, too?”

“No, they left via the front gate.”

My eyebrows rose. “That’s a bold choice. Were they injured?”

“No.”

I blew out a frustrated breath. Getting answers from Torran was like pulling teeth from a tiger. It shouldn’t bother me, but I actually wanted to find his ridiculous ring for him, and he was making it very difficult.

The line of shrubbery was unbroken in either direction, and despite standing on my tiptoes, I couldn’t see the ground outside the wall. I settled back onto my heels before I fell into the shrubs and tested Havil’s healing skills—again.

I’d seen enough. I still wanted to see the rest of the property in case we needed a quick exit, but now I had a mental map of how the thieves had gained entry. Hopefully I could pair it with Kee’s surveillance video to start putting together the night’s timeline.

And then we could figure out what Torran was really hiding.

Chapter Eighteen

After I shimmied off the wall, thankfully without injuring my knee, Torran and I walked the rest of the property. By unspoken agreement we avoided the others, though I’m sure Havil and Chira knew when we passed them.

By the time we made it back to the side of the house facing where the thieves had entered, the sun had crossed the zenith and was quickly sinking toward the horizon.